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A Food Crawl Through L.A.’s Koreatown

On a recent Friday night as my car approached Koreatown’s The Line, a ’60s concrete slab–turned–boutique hotel by partners behind New York’s Nomad Hotel and restaurateur Roy Choi, a queue awaiting entry to the hip-hop-blaring lobby bar snaked beneath Shepard Fairey’s Peace Tree mural. Making my way through the stylish, Asian hipster–leaning crowd, it was clear I was in one of those neighborhoods where everything’s happening right now, a buzzing area that’s suddenly drawing in the entire city. In K-Town, as you’ll inevitably start calling it after a few hours, authentic Asian and Latin food, rejuvenating spas, and alluring cocktail bars fill the Art Deco buildings along Wilshire Boulevard and the surrounding streets just west of downtown Los Angeles.

korea town la guidePhoto: Courtesy of @jennabessi

Start with a dip in the all-hours Wi Spa’s hot and cold pools or a sweat in the jade, salt, and clay saunas to shake off the lingering effects of a transcontinental flight—or a late night at Café Brass Monkey, a divey karaoke spot that attracts singers with serious pipes. Wi’s entry is just $25, so you’ll have money left over for a pain-is-beauty scrub, during which a spa technician expertly liberates a layer or two of dead skin, or snapping up Korean-beauty essentials like snail-mucus facial masks from the small shop in the locker room. Amore, in nearby Koreatown Plaza, has even more K-beauty: the suddenly hot ultra-hydrating overnight water masks and potions from imported brands like Laneige and Sulwhasoo.

Immigrants from South Korea began moving into the neighborhood in the 1960s, though arrivals from Latin America now make up more of the neighborhood’s population—and culinary influences are as diverse as the city itself. EsCaLa, run by Korean-American chef Chris Oh and Colombian-American musician and producer OG Chino, blends the flavors of Korea and Colombia in an only-in-L.A. fusion—think Korean barbecued short ribs, corn with cotija cheese, and empanadas filled with kimchi and chorizo fried rice. Roy Choi’s veggie-centric Commissary, on the second floor of The Line, has plates of grilled melon with prosciutto, charred carrots, and cocktails like the mescal-spiked Yellow Nectarine. Belly & Snout adds Filipino influences to comfort food (pork adobo grilled cheese; tater tots topped with tangy pork sisig). And like everywhere in L.A., in K-Town finding great Mexican food is a breeze: Try the Oaxacan cuisine at Guelaguetza, which just picked up a James Beard award, or order a torta from El Tauro Tacos, usually parked at Wilshire and Vermont.

korea town la guidePhoto: Courtesy of Roger R / @datrokid

Dreamy red banquettes line the walls at The Prince, dating to the 1920s and now the backdrop for the bar scenes on New Girl. Though you won’t find Nick yelling from behind the bar, the kitchen turns out Korean-style deep-fried chicken served with cabbage salad and jalapeños. The 27-seat Walker Inn, in a back room of Hotel Normandie, offers an omakase-style set of bartender’s-choice craft cocktails, while the hotel’s main bar pours twists on classics like the Old-Fashioned (it’s made with coconut bourbon).

korea town la guidePhoto: Courtesy of @anadela

Tucking in to bed at The Line, Hollywood Hills–view rooms are tiny but feature a full-wall window facing the Hollywood sign and Griffith Observatory. You may be tempted, as I was, to even sleep with the curtains up.